On Tuesday 24th March, I had the chance to head up to Durham University for a day all about co-production and physical activity. After a slightly chaotic journey which featured a rail replacement bus, I arrived at the Durham Business School – excited, coffee in hand and only a little bit flustered!
The day was all about exploring how co-production happens in practice, how different disciplines can work together, and where the field might be heading next.
The speakers covered some big questions, including:
- What is co-production?
- How do we look critically at co-production processes?
- How does intersectionality shape the way co-production works?
We heard from lots of different researchers sharing their projects, including our long time colleague Brett Smith. Sadly I forgot to take a selfie with him, but it was lovely to catch up.
One talk I particularly enjoyed was from Dr Oli Williams, who introduced a set of codesigned cards based on Elinor Ostrom’s principles for collaborative group working. These featured some practical activities that all related back to the principles. Our table had a great chat about how these might work in real-life workshops – lots of potential there.
We also ended up discussing the word co-production itself. Is it off-putting? Are people already doing coproduction without calling it that? It was interesting to hear how many people felt the terminology can get in the way of the work.
Afternoon inspiration
After a very welcome free lunch (always appreciated), we heard from even more speakers. One project focused on co-production in participatory dance for dementia. Then Dr Kate Marks shared insights from the “Moving Intersectionality” project within Moving Social Work.
Dr Anna Pettican gave a fascinating talk about using “go-along interviews” – basically, walking through community sport and leisure spaces together while talking. This way, people can share experiences in the exact places where inclusion or exclusion happens. It’s a method that brings out the real stories that traditional research sometimes misses.
I was lucky enough to sit at a discussion table with Anna and Andy Chapman from Sport for Confidence – who actually recognised me from our recent co-production webinars! That was a fun surprise.
After a full day of conversations, ideas, and meeting new people, it was time to head home. Thankfully, the train journey back was much smoother than the one there. I treated myself to a hot chocolate and had a quiet moment to reflect on everything I’d learned.
All in all, it was a brilliant day – full of inspiration, great people, and plenty to take away for future co-production work. One of the things I love most about co-production is the constant learning and reflection it encourages. None of us have all the answers, and that’s the point = it’s about how we work together, share openly, and keep learning from one another.
